1. The Field of the Invention
The invention herein pertains generally to ski bindings, and more particularly, to cross-country ski bindings.
2. The Background Art
There are basically two popular methods of skiing, downhill and cross-country (or touring). Downhill skiing typically takes place on mountain slopes and involves attaching a ski boot to a ski to hold the skier's foot at a fixed angle, while allowing very little ankle movement. Cross-country skiing, on the other hand, takes place on all varieties of terrain, and involves attaching a ski boot to a ski to allow raising and lowering the ski boot heel, while holding the toe fairly rigidly.
Cross-country skiing, other than when sliding downhill under the force of gravity, is typically accomplished by strides, where the skier slides or glides one foot forward and then the other, repetitively, requiring that the heel of the ski boot be free to pivot upwardly. As a consequence, the cross-country ski binding typically includes a toe plate attached to the ski for holding the toe of the ski boot, and flexible cables extending from the toe plate, along the sides of the ski boot to a heel-holding element for holding the heel of the ski boot. The cables oftentimes are attached to the toe plate by springs to allow a rearward flexing or movement of the cables and to also allow the heel-holding element and the heel of the ski boot to pivot upwardly as desired.
The ski binding configuration described above has several disadvantages including exposure of the cable and "extension" springs so that they are subject to wear, damage, cutting by ski edges, and becoming "iced" and therefore not functional. Also, use of springs which are repeatedly subject to extension generally gives rise to stretching and failure in the resiliency of the springs after time. Further, the use of two, fairly sturdy springs with the cable makes it difficult to reduce the weight of the ski binding, an important consideration in cross-country skiing. Finally, when a ski boot is pivoted forwardly too far, there is a chance the boot will slip out of the toe plate.